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Cardano Client Lib Cardano Client Lib

Why Cardano Client Lib

Cardano Client Lib (CCL) is a Java library for interacting with the Cardano blockchain. It builds, signs and submits transactions — from a simple ADA payment to a Plutus script call, a governance vote, or a multi-step workflow where one transaction spends what the last one produced.

It is a library, not a framework. There is no server to run and no lifecycle to adopt: you call it from whatever you already have — a Spring service, a CLI, a test, a Lambda.

Tx tx = new Tx()
        .payToAddress(receiverAddress, Amount.ada(10))
        .from(sender.baseAddress());


TxResult result = new QuickTxBuilder(backendService)
        .compose(tx)
        .withSigner(SignerProviders.signerFrom(sender))
        .completeAndWait();

That is a complete payment. UTXO selection, balancing, fee calculation, change and confirmation tracking are handled. result.getTxStatus() tells you whether it was confirmed.

What it covers

Section titled “What it covers”
AreaWhat you can do
TransactionsPayments, multi-asset outputs, metadata, validity intervals, custom fee payers and collateral
Native tokens & NFTsMinting and burning with native-script or Plutus policies, CIP-25 and CIP-68 metadata
Smart contractsSpend from and mint with Plutus V1–V3 validators, reference scripts and inputs, CIP-57 blueprint code generation, Aiken and Scalus interop
StakingRegistration, delegation, reward withdrawal, deregistration, script-based stake credentials
GovernanceFull Conway era — DRep registration and voting, vote delegation, proposals, committee and treasury actions
Addresses & keysBIP39 mnemonics, CIP-1852 derivation, HD wallets, base/enterprise/pointer/reward addresses
StandardsCIP-8, 20, 25, 27, 30, 67, 68
BackendsBlockfrost, Koios, Ogmios/Kupo, Nexus — or your own via UtxoSupplier

Beyond a single transaction, three preview APIs handle the harder coordination problems: TxPlan for transactions defined as configuration, TxFlow for multi-step workflows with UTXO chaining and rollback handling, and TxStream for continuous submission with exactly-once delivery.

Where to start

Section titled “Where to start”
You areStart at
New to the libraryInstallation, then Your first transaction
New to Cardano’s UTXO modelCore concepts
Looking for a specific APIKey APIs at a glance
Chaining several transactionsTxFlow: your first flow
An AI agent, or using oneAI Starter Pack

The guided path runs from a first payment through tokens, NFTs, multi-sig, Plutus scripts and staking. It is worth following in order if you are new — each step builds on the one before.

Versions

Section titled “Versions”

See Versions for the latest stable and preview releases, and what’s new for the Unified Tx API, TxFlow, TxStream, TxPlan, programmable tokens and verified data structures.

The stable release needs Java 11 or later, and previews need Java 17 or later.

Reading and watching

Section titled “Reading and watching”